South Korea’s New Deal: Will It Lead the Digital and Green Industry?

KF-VUB KOREA CHAIR POLICY BRIEF

By Nagyeong Kang

18.06.2020

At the height of global recognition for its handling of COVID-19, the Moon Jae-in administration is looking ahead with its New Deal plan, being touted as an innovative economic recovery plan, allocating around USD 63 billion till 2025. The plan is split into two pillars, the Digital and Green New Deal. The former focuses on the future through investments in the areas of 5G wireless communication and AI, while bringing the rest of South Korea up to speed in digitalisation. The latter plan tackles climate change by committing to the greenhouse gas emissions target laid out in the 2015 Paris Agreement. Both plans are set up for long-term job creation amid the impending Fourth Industrial Revolution. Nonetheless, lack of specificity and inclusivity are the points of contention, and with the administration’s economic track record taken into consideration, there remain doubts amid optimism on the future of the New Deal plan.

South Korea’s New Deal.pdf